Progressive students have been demanding this at schools across the country for years.
The Seattle U. Newsroom reports:
Seattle University First in the State to Divest from Fossil FuelsSeattle University scrubbed its endowment portfolio of fossil fuel investments as of June 30, becoming the first university in Washington state and the first Jesuit Catholic university in the country to fulfill this commitment of divestment, while charting a new course of socially conscious investing.SU is a leader in the divestment and sustainability movements globally and nationally. In 2018, SU became the first Jesuit university in the country to pledge 100 percent withdrawal from publicly traded fossil fuel investments. According to the university’s Center for Environmental Justice and Sustainability, SU is also the first Jesuit university in the world to pledge to fully remove its money from investments in fossil fuels.Though the university is at the end of the five-year divestment process, it is just one part of Seattle University’s ongoing efforts toward building a sustainable community that supports human and ecological health, social justice and economic well-being through Socially Responsible Investing.Aside from being a substantive step toward confronting the climate crisis, fossil fuel divestment aligns with the university’s commitment to sustainability and environmental justice, tenets underscored by SU’s Reigniting Our Strategic Directions and acknowledging and confronting the disproportionate exposure of poor communities and people of color to environmental hazards and health burdens.SU has led the way in environmental stewardship and initiatives that aim to combat climate change and improve the planet for all. It was the first university in the Pacific Northwest to earn the title of Fair Trade Designated University, our urban campus is designated a “wildlife habitat” and “tree campus” and the grounds are 100 percent organically maintained—that means free of pesticides—and include many edible gardens. And, in another effort led by students, SU was the first school in the state to remove single-use bottled water on campus.
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